Permaculture is a systemic design approach inspired by natural ecosystems. Created in the 1970s by Bill Mollison and David Holmgren in Australia, it aims to create sustainable, resilient and self-sufficient agricultural and social systems. The word is a contraction of "permanent agriculture" and, by extension, "permanent culture". It integrates agriculture, architecture, ecology and even economics into a holistic vision.
FAQ & Discovery Guide
Everything you need to know about permaculture and Permatheque
Permaculture
Discover answers to the most frequently asked questions about permaculture.
The three fundamental ethics of permaculture are: Earth Care — protecting soils, water, air and biodiversity; People Care — meeting everyone's basic needs and fostering mutual aid; Fair Share — redistributing surpluses and limiting our consumption to what is necessary.
David Holmgren defined 12 design principles: 1) Observe and interact, 2) Catch and store energy, 3) Obtain a yield, 4) Apply self-regulation and accept feedback, 5) Use and value renewable resources, 6) Produce no waste, 7) Design from patterns to details, 8) Integrate rather than segregate, 9) Use small and slow solutions, 10) Use and value diversity, 11) Use edges and value the marginal, 12) Creatively use and respond to change.
To get started: 1) Observe your land for a full season (sunlight, wind, slope, water). 2) Draw a design plan in concentric zones. 3) Start small — one raised bed or square is enough. 4) Mulch abundantly to protect and feed the soil. 5) Use companion planting. 6) Set up a compost bin. 7) Plant fruit trees and hedgerows. Patience is key: a permaculture system takes 3 to 5 years to reach maturity.
Organic farming prohibits synthetic chemical inputs but often maintains a monocultural and intensive approach. Permaculture goes further: it completely rethinks the system by drawing inspiration from natural ecosystems. It promotes polyculture, plant associations, hedgerows, ponds, and animals integrated into the system. Permaculture is a holistic design method, while organic farming is a production specification.
Yes, many market gardeners and farmers make a living from permaculture. Permaculture farms like Le Bec Hellouin in France have demonstrated higher productivity per square meter than conventional farming on small areas. Income can come from selling fruits and vegetables, training courses, farm stays, food processing, or a mixed model combining several activities.
Absolutely! Urban permaculture uses balconies, terraces, rooftops, community gardens and even indoor spaces. Adapted techniques include: container and raised bed gardening, green walls, vermicomposting, rainwater harvesting, urban micro-chicken coops (subject to regulations). Community gardens and incredible edibles are examples of collective urban applications.
The main courses are: the Permaculture Design Certificate (PDC) of 72 hours, internationally recognized; introductory workshops of 2-5 days; advanced courses (advanced design, agriculture, etc.); and university degrees that are beginning to integrate permaculture. On Permatheque, you'll find a catalog of courses offered by certified trainers.
Permaculture design follows a methodology: 1) Site analysis — map resources, constraints, climate, soil. 2) Zones and sectors — organize space into 5 concentric zones (from most visited to most wild) and analyze sectors (sun, wind, water). 3) Elements and connections — each element serves multiple functions, each function is served by multiple elements. 4) Succession — plan the system's evolution over time.
Essential books: "Permaculture: A Designers' Manual" by Bill Mollison, "Permaculture: Principles and Pathways Beyond Sustainability" by David Holmgren, "Creating a Forest Garden" by Martin Crawford, "Miraculous Abundance" by Charles and Perrine Hervé-Gruyer. Films: "Tomorrow" by Cyril Dion, "The Permaculture Awakening". Websites: permaculture.fr, permaculturedesign.fr, and of course Permatheque.org for the French-speaking community.
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Welcome to Permatheque
Permatheque is a community platform dedicated to permaculture. It brings together a collaborative blog, a marketplace, classifieds, an interactive map, a discussion forum, events, online courses, crowdfunding and much more. This guide presents all the features according to your user profile.
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Your user profile
Select your profile to display the features that are relevant to you:
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Discover the features
Click on each section to learn more. Check "Read" to track your progress.
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Create your account and customize your profile with avatar, bio, interests and social links. Enable the professional profile to display your business information and become a Pro Merchant.
- Registration by email or social network
- Customizable profile with avatar and bio
- Privacy and notification settings
Public
Member
Publish and read articles about permaculture, gardening, ecology and sustainable lifestyles. Comment, share and bookmark.
- Article writing with rich text editor
- Categories, tags and advanced search
- Comments, favorites and social sharing
Public
Member
Moderator
Browse our catalog of books on permaculture and ecology. Members get a 5% discount on all books.
- Book catalog by category
- 5% discount for members
- Reviews and recommendations from the community
Public
Member
Post and browse classifieds: equipment for sale, plant exchanges, land searches, permaculture service offers.
- Posting classifieds with geolocation
- Categories and search filters
- Direct contact between individuals
Public
Member
Explore the interactive map to find gardens, farms, associations and events near you. Add your own places.
- Leaflet map with category markers
- Filters by place type and search
- Add new places with Nominatim address lookup
Public
Member
Ask questions, share your experiences and interact with the community in themed discussions.
- Themed discussion categories
- Votes and discussion tracking
- Reply notifications
Public
Member
Moderator
Discover and attend workshops, training sessions, meetups and permaculture markets. Create your own events with integrated Stripe Connect ticketing (commissions vary by profile).
- Calendar, list view, categories and interactive map
- Online registration, iCal export and Google Calendar sync
- Event creation with location, staff and group attachment
Public
Member
Enroll in online permaculture courses: video lessons, progressive modules, live sessions with certified trainers.
- Filterable catalog by type and level
- Lesson-by-lesson progress tracking
- Live sessions and messaging with trainers
Member
Chat privately with other community members. Discuss projects, negotiate purchases or organize collaborations.
- Private conversations between members
- Message history
- New message notifications
Member
Earn experience points (XP) for each action (registration, publication, comment, purchase, event, donation…) and progress through 11 nature-themed levels (Pollen → Canopy). 58 configurable XP actions + 25 badges to unlock.
- 'Progress' tab in your account: level, XP bar, rank and badges
- 58 rewarded actions across all modules (posts, events, commerce, crowdfunding, wiki, map, discussions…)
- XP amounts adjustable by administrators (no code changes)
Member
Create your online shop and sell your products (plants, seeds, tools, books, services). Secure payment via Stripe Connect.
- Product listings with photo gallery
- Secure Stripe Connect payment
- Order and shipping management
Seller
Admin
Launch a crowdfunding campaign for your personal permaculture projects: garden, training, equipment.
- Campaign creation with goal and duration
- Campaign pages with updates
- Rewards for contributors
Member
Fund your professional or association projects: farm creation, land acquisition, business development.
- Campaigns with funding tiers
- Contribution tracking dashboard
- Communication with contributors
Seller
Admin
Offer your own online courses. Create modules, video lessons, organize live sessions and manage enrollments.
- Course creation with modules and lessons
- Live sessions with integrated video conferencing
- Enrollment and review management
Seller
Admin
Manage your sales activity: order tracking, shipping management, revenue statistics and Stripe configuration.
- Sales and revenue dashboard
- Shipping management and tracking
- Stripe transaction history
Seller
Admin
SuperAdmin
Explore our video collection of permaculture content: tutorials, conferences, documentaries and practitioner testimonials.
- Video catalog by category and tags
- Sort by date, popularity or comments
- YouTube integration and embedded player
Public
Member
Browse reference documents, technical sheets and practical guides on permaculture methods, eco-construction and ecological transition.
- Downloadable PDF documents and guides
- Classification by thematic category
- Full-text search in documents
Public
Member
Discover detailed book reviews on reference works in permaculture, ecology and sustainable lifestyles. Summaries, reviews and recommendations.
- Book reviews with summary and opinion
- Links to the bookshop to purchase books
- Categorization by theme and author
Public
Member
Collaborative permaculture encyclopedia. Contribute to the knowledge base by proposing changes to existing entries. All contributions are moderated before publication.
- Collaborative encyclopedic articles
- Organization by thematic categories
- Open contribution for members
Member
Moderator
Central page gathering all content types: articles, videos, documentation, book reviews and wiki. Filter by type, category or keyword.
- Aggregated view of all content
- Filters by type, category and search
- Sort by date, popularity or comments
Public
Member
Subscribe to the newsletter to receive the latest news, articles and events from the permaculture community directly in your inbox.
- One-click subscribe and unsubscribe
- Frequency and topic preferences
- Sent newsletter archives
Public
Member
Need help? Create a support ticket to report a problem, ask a question or request a feature. Our team responds within 48 hours.
- Ticket creation by category
- Status tracking and exchange history
- Email notifications for responses
Member
Hub central regroupant la librairie, les boutiques, l'artisanat et les annonces. Explorez, filtrez par categorie et decouvrez les stands vendeurs.
- Recherche multi-criteres avec filtres par type et categorie
- Stands vendeurs dynamiques (agriculture, artisanat, pepinieriste, etc.)
- Deduplication des livres par ISBN, comparaison de prix et facture telechargeable pour les commandes payees
Public
Member
Support Permatheque by becoming a member or making a donation. Four plans tailored to every profile: Minor (free), Individual (20 EUR with Solidarity option at 8 EUR), Professional (80 EUR) and Association (50 EUR). All members enjoy 0% commission across all services.
- 4 membership plans: Minor (free), Individual (20 EUR), Professional (80 EUR), Association (50 EUR)
- 0% commission on all services for members (marketplace, classifieds, courses, crowdfunding, events)
- Digital member card in PERM-YYYY-NNNN format
Public
Member
Suivez les dernieres publications, evenements et activites de la communaute permacole en un seul endroit.
- 5 sections thematiques : articles, evenements, campagnes, produits, populaires
- Mur d'actualite des membres avec posts, photos et liens
- API JSON paginee pour le chargement dynamique
Public
Member
Choose a profile to get started
Wiki
Questions frequentes sur le wiki collaboratif de Permatheque.
The wiki is a collaborative encyclopedia organized into 11 sections: plants, animals, techniques, principles, personalities, biodiversity, glossary, articles, guilds, ecovillages and calendar. Each entry contains detailed information that the community can enrich.
Log into your account, then go to the entry you want to enrich. At the bottom of the page, click Propose a modification. Choose the field to modify (description, habitat, cultivation, uses, associations or notes), write your proposal and add an explanatory comment if needed, then submit.
Your contribution is saved with Pending status. A moderator reviews your proposal, can preview it and add a note. They can then approve it (the content is automatically applied to the entry) or reject it. You are notified of the result.
Any logged-in user can propose modifications to wiki entries. Visitors who are not logged in see a link to sign in. Contributions are open to all members of the Permatheque community.
Moderators, animators and administrators have access to the moderation panel (/admin/moderation, Wiki tab). They can preview proposed content, add an internal note, then approve or reject each contribution.
Use the search bar at the top of the wiki page to find entries by keyword. You can also browse by section (plants, techniques, etc.) or alphabetically using the sidebar.
Go to your account area, section My wiki contributions (accessible from the sidebar menu). You will find the list of all your contributions with their status (pending, approved, rejected) and any moderator notes.
Yes, the Wiki contributors page lists all members who have contributed, with the number of approved contributions and the date of their last contribution.
Yes, each submitted contribution and each approved contribution are automatically posted to the members' activity feed, with a distinctive Wiki badge.
Profil Pro
Questions frequentes sur le profil professionnel et le statut Marchand Pro.
Go to your profile page (/account/profile) and toggle on Professional Profile. Additional fields appear: SIRET number, professional activity, full address, responsible person, phone, email, professional website, and social media links. Fill in the desired fields and click Save.
First enable the professional profile, then check Become a Pro Merchant on Permatheque. Click the Connect my Stripe account button to set up your payment account via Stripe Express. Once Stripe is configured, you can save and sell on the marketplace.
If you check the Pro Merchant box without having configured your Stripe account, saving is blocked. You must either connect your Stripe account by clicking the provided button, or uncheck the Pro Merchant box to save your other changes.
Stripe Connect is a secure payment platform that allows Permatheque to manage payments between buyers and sellers. By clicking Connect my Stripe account, you are redirected to Stripe to provide your banking and identity information. Your data never passes through Permatheque servers. Payments are automatic within 2 to 7 business days.
Yes. If you have enabled the professional profile and filled in your information (SIRET, activity, address, etc.), this data is displayed in a summary box during the Stripe step of seller onboarding (/publier/vendeur). You don't need to re-enter it.
The general Terms of Use govern your general usage of the platform (reading, commenting, buying, donating, membership). The Pro Seller Terms (CGV Pro) form a distinct commercial contract: they define your obligations as a professional seller, Permatheque commissions, Stripe payout schedules, dispute handling, and insurance / tax clauses. Because this is a new contract, you must explicitly accept it, even if you previously accepted the standard Terms. The two consents are stored separately:
user_consents (general public) and user_pro_consents (professional).
Members (all plans): 0% commission across all services. Non-members: commissions are calculated on the gross (VAT-inclusive) amount and deducted via Stripe Connect: 3% marketplace, 1% classifieds, 5% crowdfunding, 8% LMS courses. For events: 1% individual, 3% association, 5% professional. Stripe processing fees (2.5% + €0.25 per transaction) are separate and withheld by Stripe directly. Join to benefit from 0% commission!
Both documents are freely accessible at /cgv-pro (a link is also present in the footer, under the Legal section). The version displayed is always the one currently in force (flagged
is_current = 1 in legal_documents). A SHA-256 history of previous versions is preserved for auditability.
Yes. When a new major version of the Pro Seller Terms is published,
ProConsentService automatically detects the hash change and prompts you to re-consent the next time you access the seller panel. Your previous consents remain archived in user_pro_consents with their version, date, IP and user-agent, so we can always prove which version you accepted on which date. Ongoing sales are not impacted by the new version.
Each professional activity (selling, training, pro crowdfunding, independent bookshop) can be attached to its own Stripe Connect Express account via the
user_professional_activities table. This lets you separate the accounting of a micro-business from that of an association, or assign different accounts to different marketplace stands. The seller panel (/publier/vendeur/activites) manages these attachments. Stripe payouts follow the regulatory status chosen by each account (sole trader, company, association).